Tribe of Benjamin

Tribe of Benjamin
Geographical range	West Asia
Major sites	Jerusalem
Preceded by	New Kingdom of Egypt
Followed by	Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)

According to the Torah, the Tribe of Benjamin (Hebrew: בִּנְיָמִן, Modern: Bīnyamīn, Tiberian: Bīnyāmīn) was one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. The tribe was descended from Benjamin, the youngest son of the patriarch Jacob (later given the name Israel) and his wife Rachel.^[1] In the Samaritan Pentateuch the name appears as Binyamīm (Hebrew: בנימים).

The Tribe of Benjamin, located to the north of Judah but to the south of the Kingdom of Israel, is significant in biblical narratives as a source of various Israelite leaders, including the first Israelite king, Saul, as well as earlier tribal leaders in the period of the Judges. In the period of the judges, they feature in an episode in which a civil war results in their near-extinction as a tribe. After the brief period of the United Kingdom of Israel, Benjamin became part of the southern Kingdom of Judah following the split into two kingdoms. After the destruction of the northern kingdom, Benjamin was fully absorbed into the southern kingdom. After Judah was destroyed by the Babylonians in the early sixth century BCE and its population deported, Benjamin as an organized tribe faded from history.

Members of the tribe are referred to as Benjamites or Benjaminites.

^ Lemche, Niels Peter (2004). Historical dictionary of ancient Israel. Historical dictionaries of ancient civilizations and historical eras. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. pp. 80–81. ISBN 978-0-8108-4848-1.

[:02-1] Lemche, Niels Peter (2004). Historical dictionary of ancient Israel. Historical dictionaries of ancient civilizations and historical eras. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. pp. 80–81. ISBN 978-0-8108-4848-1.

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